Nizhny Novgorod Stadium: FC Olimpiyets Nizhny Novgorod

The Nizhny Novgorod Stadium is one of several Russian stadiums that has been built especially for the FIFA World Cup, which will be hosted in the country in the summer of 2018. Unlike some of the other grounds, this one is not an old stadium that is being re-built but is being constructed from scratch. At this stage the information we have about the ground is limited, so we’ll do the best we can and then update this guide once we know more.

One thing we do know is that the stadium will be the home of FC Olimpiyets Nizhny Novgorod once the World Cup is over. The team was originally set up as a feeder club for FC Volga Nizhny Novgorod but when they were dissolved in 2016 Olimpiyets became the biggest club in the city of Nizhny Novgorod. The other thing we can say with certainty is the ground will host six matches at the World Cup, including one of the Last 16 games and a quarter-final.

Nizhny Novgorod Stadium Seating Plan & Where to Sit

Own Image

Nizhny Novgorod Stadium will have enough room for just shy of 45,000 spectators, of which more than nine hundred will be made available to people of limited mobility as well as their helpers. The supporters will be seated over two tiers, with the upper one being larger than the lower. The idea is that the ground will have a swirling bowl design to it.

Getting To Nizhny Novgorod Stadium

Train - It would take you more than two days to get to the city of Nizhny Novgorod by train, so you’ll almost certainly want to take a different route there. Once in the city you’ll want to head to the Strelka Metro Station, which is part of the Nizhny Novgorod Metro and is the closest to the ground.

Useful Resources

Nizhny Novgorod Stadium Hotels

Located less than a mile from the stadium is this four-star hotel with over four hundred and fifty rooms in it. There are two restaurants as well as a bar area and a conference centre. There’s a fitness suite that includes a spa and sauna. For those of you who plan to drive whilst you’re in Russia, you’ll be pleased to know that there’s free parking at this hotel. Meanwhile if you’re there to work then the free Wi-Fi will be for you. More details.

A brisk fifteen minute walk from the ground is this pleasant hotel with less than thirty rooms. It doesn’t quite have the same sort of facilities as the other hotels on this list but it’s worth considering for the personal service that you’ll get. That includes a made-to-order breakfast that’s included with the cost of your stay and free Wi-Fi for those of you with a computer or personal device. There’s also a conference room, should you need to do any work whilst you’re there. More details.

About two miles from the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium is the Alexandrovsky Garden Hotel. It boasts close to fifty rooms and has a restaurant as well as two different bars. There’s a twenty-four hour fitness centre complete with an indoor pool, plus free Wi-Fi and a conference centre if you’ve got some work to do. There’s an airport shuttle should you need transport once you’ve landed, as well as free parking if you’ve got your own transportation. More details.

Pubs & Bars Near Nizhny Novgorod Stadium

Sports Bar

ul. Piskunova 40, Nizhny Novgorod, 603005 (+7 831 278 08 24)

The imaginatively named Sports Bar on Piskunova is a great place to go if you want to watch some live sport in the city of Nizhny Novgorod. There are a number of TVs dotted around the place where you can watch live events, plus it’s a restaurant so you can get a decent bite to eat if that takes your fancy. It’s based over two floors and there’s always a decent atmosphere on match days, which might have something to do with the cracking beer they sell.

Champs Sports Bar

If you want to find somewhere to watch a match or other sporting event in a city then a place called 'Champs' is always a good bet. The one in Nizhny Novgorod is no exception, thanks to the numerous TV screens they have on the walls throughout the establishment. It’s got the look of an American diner but don’t let that fool you; there’s a great selection of beers and spirits available to customers. The main thing that does fit in with the decor is the food, which is American themed.

Kraken Bar

Rozhdestvenskaya St, 45а, Nizhny Novgorod, 603001 (+7 831 410 82 10)

This isn’t a sports bar but it’s still very much worth a visit if you’re in Nizhny Novgorod. The drinks selection is top-notch and the atmosphere is brilliant. A small venue with an intimate feel, the menu will impress as will the cocktail list. If you’re after somewhere to go when the match is finished then this is a place that should be on the top of your list. Just make sure you don’t get dragged down by the legendary sea monster!

Hospitality

Own Image

The design of the stadium features enough room for two levels of sky boxes, which isn’t all that surprising considering how much of a value FIFA put on their corporate niceties.

Private Hire

Stadiums are expensive things to build, so clubs and companies try to find numerous ways to make money back from them. One of those ways is to hire out the hospitality sections etc. to companies and private people who might want to use them for events. It’s likely that that will be the case at Nizhny Novgorod Stadium, so we’ll confirm that once we know.

Stadium Tours & Museum

Obviously the ground hasn’t opened yet so there’s no information about tours.

Nizhny Novgorod Stadium History

Own Image

Given that the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium hasn’t even opened its doors at the time of writing, it would be entirely fair to say that its history has yet to be written. What we can tell you is that OAO Stroytransgaz was the company originally chosen by the Ministry of Sport of the Russian Federation to construct the stadium in a deal worth over sixteen and a half billion Rubles. The work began in 2015, with basic things like excavations and pile installations being the first stuff to get done. The following year the work progressed to building all of the floors of the new ground and by the end of the year about half of the entire work was completed.

The hope was that the stadium would be completed by the end of 2017, so the steel structures and he majority of the concrete was done in the early parts of the year. Perhaps the most important thing in any football ground is the pitch, so you might be interested to know that the first seeds of the field were sown in July of 2017. In September some polymer threads were added to the lawn to progress its development. Though not part of the stadium itself, another part of the infrastructure of the local area includes the building of a new Metro station nearby. Strelka Metro Station was more than half completed by the start of 2017 and will serve visitors to the ground.

Future Developments

Own Image

At the time of writing the stadium isn’t even fully built, so the major development in the future will be the completion of the new ground.